


It Takes Time

by Mersheeple



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Co-workers, F/M, Smut, Time Chamber, Time Turner (Harry Potter), Unspeakables (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-26
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 04:28:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26669731
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mersheeple/pseuds/Mersheeple
Summary: Hermione Granger wants to know all about Time, so she decides to work with the Unspeakables in the Time Chamber. Time Sand is a curious thing though...
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Severus Snape
Comments: 23
Kudos: 135





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thebarsofhisplight](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thebarsofhisplight/gifts).



> This story got away from me...lol...don't they all? Anyway, it is going to be a couple of chapters over the weekend...lol...!
> 
> Ella, my lovely, Happy Birthday and I hope you have had a fantastic day! <3

She had chosen to work in the Time Chamber after the War. Of course, she had been told that the Time Room no longer existed. A group of… ahem… “ruffians” had smashed everything in the Time Room and destroyed hundreds of years of research. She had said nothing, raising an eyebrow at the interviewer, who had blushed hotly and refused to comment any further.

Hermione had left her name and address with the receptionist and waited. They had come for her at eleven that night; three men in deep blue uniforms, armed to the teeth with various pieces of equipment from the Aurory. She had barely flinched as she had disarmed all three men, using an Incarcerous charm to keep them bound. A fourth person came forward from the shadows, clapping slowly. She turned to face them, bowing slightly before looking and raising an eyebrow.

“Well played, Miss Granger. You’ll do.” The voice was vaguely familiar in an utterly impossible way and Hermione would have questioned what she knew if she hadn’t found herself collapsing in a heap on the floor in a deep sleep before she woke up in the bowels of the Ministry, wearing the deep blue uniform of the Unspeakables. A band of dirty gold embroidery adorned her wrist. She touched it gently and a voice interrupted her musings.

“That gives you access to the Time Chamber. Mine gives access to the Love Room.” The person in front of her, male she thought, held up their wrist so she could see the pink of their embroidery. Hermione attempted to look at his face to see if this was someone she knew and was surprised when her eyes would not focus on it at all. The person laughed and Hermione thought there was probably a smile hidden under the blur of their face.

“Newbies always find it disorienting. The only faces you will see are the bosses and those you work with. Oh, and, fair warning, you’ll need to head to the Time Chamber soon. Your boss doesn’t like anyone being late. Funny that, isn’t it?” The person walked away, waving at her and she stood from the desk she had woken at, walking with strong knowledge of exactly where she was going, though she had never been there before. Or at least, not from this direction.

She walked until she found the door to the ante chamber and pushed it open. She entered the chamber and closed the door, expecting the disorienting spinning she had experienced the last time she had been here with her, she giggled softly to herself, “team of ruffians” and was pleasantly surprised when there was no spinning. Instead, one door glowed gold before opening to admit her to the Time Chamber. She walked into the room with a smile on her face, ready to meet her co-workers.

Her smile faltered as she saw only one person in the room, a man she had thought she would never see again. He raised an eyebrow at her and she felt strangely giddy.

“It was you then? You came into my flat last night and brought me here…?” He inclined his head and she frowned curiously. He waved his hand towards a board and words appeared on it.

“Miss Granger, last night I broke the rules. Would you like me to break them again?” She looked at him curiously before nodding nervously. He looked at her and waved his wand hand slowly again and in an instant she felt an odd pressure inside her head.

“Hello Miss Granger.” His voice spoke in her head but, she realised, there was no movement on his lips.

“Legilimency?” She queried softly, careful not to speak too loudly inside her head.

“Just so. You can talk normally if you wish to Miss Granger. I cannot do that any longer.” He gestured to his throat before giving her a grim little smile. She nodded slightly and took a slightly shaky breath.

“Would you prefer me to speak aloud Sir?” She rather thought he would prefer that she never spoke at all but decided not to give him that option. She heard him laugh and his eyes twinkled at her as she realised with embarrassment that he had heard her thoughts.

“Miss Granger, you can speak any way you want. I am not averse to either option. First, may I give you the tour before we begin our day of experimenting?” She smiled excitedly and nodded and tried extremely hard to keep her excited squeals quiet in her head. His soft echoing chuckle in her head made her realise she hadn’t quite managed to hide the squeals completely. Her skin flushed slightly, and he smirked again.

“This way Miss Granger.” He walked to the back wall of the room and she watched as two doors appeared out of nowhere. She walked after him and he opened the door, gesturing that it was safe to precede him. She entered the room and her jaw dropped. On shelves all over the wall were small glass vials filled with…


	2. Chapter 2

“Time Sand! But…how?” She spoke the question softly, out loud because she knew that way she would be able to keep her volume moderated.

“Do you know what Time Sand is? What it is made of I mean, Miss Granger?” She walked towards the set of shelves and raised her hand to touch one of the vials. Turning to look at him, she noticed he was smirking, quietly giving her permission to touch the vials and inspect them. Her hand brushed one of the vials and her eyes went wide as she took a sighing breath and felt like she was falling.

_Severus Snape was standing touching the vials, looking straight at her. He smiled, a real genuine smile, and then leaned towards her, a soft kiss brushing her lips. Her eyes widened and she gasped. He stepped back slightly, smiled softly and said just three words before vanishing._

_**Not yet then.** _

She heard a chuckle echo in her head and her eyes whipped to Severus Snape, her co-worker, looking for all the world like he found her the funniest thing in the world. His eyes twinkled in a way that was not the same dark glitter she had seen before but something warmer, friendlier. She smiled back at him before something clicked in her head and she frowned.

“You spoke. With…words.” She looked at him as he began to laugh softly in her head.

“I always use words, Miss Granger. Would you prefer I used something else?” He was laughing now and she rolled her eyes.

“I meant you used your voice. Was that the past? What the…what _was_ that?” Hermione mumbled and then blinked at him as he chuckled again.

“Past, future, alternative present…I don’t know what it was, what you saw. That’s what the Time Sand can do. Our experiments have shown us that Time Sand is made of a strange combination of things. We have found traces of Phoenix Eggshell, Mermaid Scales, Nundu Fang Shavings and the salt from the tears of a Unicorn. We don’t know who collected the original items and created the Time Sand. We only know that somehow it multiplies with each use. We believe that the Time Sand collects itself, that’s the only way we can explain it. Come.” He half-herded her out of the room and to the next door, opening it and ushering her inside. This room caused her jaw to drop again and he smirked at her.

“Copies of the Mirror of Erised?” She questioned him softly in her head and he shook his head and laughed.

“No. These are known as ‘Could Be’ mirrors. Stand in front of any mirror and you will see an alternative future or what an alternative choice could have been. The carvings around the edges give an insight into the year they will show. It is different for everyone of course. But, see here…” Severus pointed to one mirror and she chose to stand in front of it. The carvings around the edge were symbols of water and fire, symbols of dark and light. She wasn’t sure what she was going to see but she had to look anyway.

_The Goblet of Fire spat out a piece of paper and Albus Dumbledore caught it from the air. He stared at the piece of paper and shook his head. No. No. He was refusing to read the name aloud. Minerva McGonagall plucked the paper from his hand and read the name. Her eyes widened slightly and she pursed her lips._

_**Hermione Granger.** _

Hermione stared at the mirror as the scene faded and Severus smiled at her look of confusion. He shrugged at her and waved her out of the room ahead of him. She smiled at him and then pushed the questions down again. He chuckled softly and she knew that her inside voice was obviously squealing and jumping up and down.

“Let me explain what we are going to do here. We want to find where all the Time Sand is coming from. You and the…as Maude would say…Ruffians managed to destroy the Time Turners completely and yet the Time Sand continued to grow exponentially. We do not understand how. That is why you and I are here.”

“What have you found so far Mr…Professor…uh…?” She stumbled over his honorific and he smirked, enjoying her discomfort.

“Severus is fine. Honestly, Miss Granger, you can use my first name. It won’t bite. Neither will it’s owner.” She giggled at the smirk he was offering her and then blushed as he continued a sentence she never expected to hear.

“Unless you want me to…”


	3. Chapter 3

The Time Sand had some sort of strange effect on them both. Boundaries were blurred, life was complicated, memories were forgotten and forgiven and remembered and relived. It was a difficult situation for her to get used to, but it helped her to start working on the problem of the origin of Time Sand.

“Severus, the Time Sand…is it consistent? Does the Sand appear at regular intervals?” Their psychic link helped hugely until one or other of them left the Time Chamber. They used it often, discussing everything in the silence of the room.

“It seems to appear more often in the morning, with a steady stream of smaller amounts during the day. Do you have a theory?” Severus turned to smile at her and accidentally flicked some of the Time Sand he was studying towards her. It arced in a rainbow of colours, golds and silvers and russets and a tiny spark of emerald and ruby. They both gasped as the Time Sand particles showed them a glimpse of something.

_Hermione touched his skin, smiling softly, tracing her fingers over the ridges of his scars, leaning up on tiptoes to brush her fingers against his lips before flicking her tongue across his bottom lip and pressing her lips against his._

She blinked and stared up at Severus who had, somehow, managed to move closer to her and had his hand on her hip. He smiled down at her and shrugged, pulling away before she even had the chance to ask what was going on. She frowned slightly and went back to her work, thinking loudly in his direction in answer to his question.

“I wonder if it is the same everywhere in the world. Have we asked any questions of other Ministries?” Her thought process was magnificent, and he smiled at her.

“The Americans say that their Time Sand arrives in bursts. Between 7am and 12 noon it appears regularly. Then less often as the day goes on. Then there seems to be another short burst between 10pm and midnight. They cannot explain either of the bursts.” Severus’s face was pinched, and she tapped her finger against her lips. And then she paused, flicking the Time Sand at him intentionally. His eyebrow raised, he let himself fall into the memory glimpse.

_She fell to her knees in front of him, smiling up at him as she took his still flaccid member in her mouth. Somehow, his clothing had vanished, but he didn’t even question it. She cupped his bollocks and slowly sucked him deeply. He dropped his head back, his eyes closed, and he moaned softly._

His eyes opened again, and she was standing close to him, touching his skin. She smiled softly, tracing her fingers over the ridges of his scars, leaning up on tiptoes to brush her fingers against his lips before flicking her tongue across his bottom lip and pressing her lips against his and making him moan. She pulled away and smiled at him, nodding softly before going back to the Time Sand at her desk. He said nothing for the longest time and she wondered if she had pushed the boundaries a little more than she should have.

“Why did you do that?” The voice in her head was smaller than she had ever heard it before and it sounded almost broken. She frowned, wondering what to say.

“I wanted to. I’ve wanted to for a long time.” She spoke softly, out loud so that her words could not be misconstrued in any way at all.

“Why?” The voice was still small, cracking as if he was emotional. She turned to look at him and his hair, usually tied back behind his neck, had been loosened, covering his face from her view. She frowned at his profile, looking so much like her old professor, and hoped that he would look at her so that she could answer. Instead, he stepped back from the table and turned his back on her. His shoulders shook slightly, and she knew that he was crying. She walked behind him, touching his shoulder lightly with her hand and saying nothing to him at all.

“Why would you kiss me?” The voice in her head was stronger now but still softer than she would have expected. There was a distinct and definite wobble to the pitch of his voice, but she heard the breath he took before hand and she knew he was trying to pull himself together. She slipped her arms around his waist and pressed her cheek against his back.

“Because I wanted to kiss you. I wanted to be able to kiss you and touch you and taste you and trace your lips with my tongue. The way you talk to me, the way you smile…I want you a little more every day. Every time, _every_ time I have touched the Time Sand since that very first day I have seen our kisses and wondered if they are…if they could possibly be as perfect as they look.” She turned her face to kiss his back and he shuddered slightly. With a sigh of resignation, she pulled away, moving back to her desk to look once more at the grains of Sand, still trying to work out why the MACUSA could have such different results to what they had found in the UK.


	4. Chapter 4

“Time Zones!” She shrieked so loudly that she wasn’t entirely sure if she had said it out loud or in her head but at least she knew he would hear her. He had been ignoring her for almost a week, since the day she had kissed him. He sighed softly and turned to look at her for the first time in five days. He raised an eyebrow but stayed silent, even in her head.

“What if…what if the reason that the Americans have these bursts is because of the time zones? No, no, hear me out… 7am until 12 noon New York time means that all the US time zones have got to 7am. You see what I mean?” She was bouncing and rocking on her feet and seemed excited and Severus nodded slowly, his lips pursed.

“What are you suggesting, Miss Granger?” He was so uptight, so formal. It was driving her spare, especially after their kiss, even though she initiated it.

“Ok…so, hear me out? We all seem to have a burst of activity around 7am local time right? What if that is…that is _wasted_ time? Time we spend sleeping. What if Time Sand is made up in the moments we aren’t doing anything important? What if Time Sand is…those moments that mean nothing so that we can have moments that mean everything?” She looked at him with a smile on her lips and his lips twitched into a half smile.

“It sounds plausible. But, if that is the case, then why does the Time Sand pick such odd moments to show us when we spill it?” Severus turned to look fully at her then and, without warning, she flicked a full handful of Time Sand at him.

_He placed a hand in the small of her back and tugged her to him. He began to hum, rocking slowly and gently from side to side. She sighed, laying her head on his chest as they danced. There was no music, but they didn’t need it. She glanced up at him and noticed the fine lines around his eyes, the touch of grey in his eyebrows and jawline and the slight flush to his cheeks. He looked healthier but older. She raised her palm to his cheek, stroking her fingers over his jaw and down to his hair on his shoulders. He turned his head, kissing her palm, stroking his lips and tongue against her skin. She shivered against him and smiled up at him. His smile lit his eyes from within as he bent down to kiss her deeply._

Their lips met as their joint Time Sand induced fantasy faded and Hermione found herself moaning with just the brush of his lips. His hands were slow, strong, warm against her skin. His lips were tentative, unsure, searching for her agreement that this…whatever this was, was ok. She parted her lips, deepening the kiss as her tongue touched his. She sighed as he moaned against her lips, his hand sliding down her side until it rested on her hip. He pulled her closer to his body and she felt him hardening against her stomach. She groaned loudly and he pulled away, looking down at her with a sheepish smile.

“Why did you kiss me Severus?” She spoke softly and looked at him sadly. He smiled again, a soft and nervous smile, and then kissed her forehead lightly.

“Because I wanted to. Because the Time Sand seems to want to keep showing me this until I do it for real. Because you got to do it last time. Because it seems inevitable. And a hundred other reasons.” Severus smiled at her and wondered what her response would be. She said nothing, looking at him with wide eyes and a dropped jaw. The smile on his face dropped and he turned away from her and back to his desk. She waited in silence, watching his back and, once she was sure he was ignoring her and trying not to cry, she spoke softly, inside her head.

“It takes time to get it right. But I think we have enough of it here don’t you? There’s more than enough time for us to make it work…”


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we go loves, a nice ending with lots of love to all of you! Thank you for all your comments...

His lips slammed against hers as he pinned her against the wall. She shifted beneath him, lifting one leg to pull her centre closer to him. He held her hands in one of his and used the other to lift her up, stroking under her hip to cup her buttocks. The kiss deepened and, with a wave of his hand, he vanished her clothes. She gasped and pulled away from his still questing lips and glared at him.

“Severus, we are at work! We don’t have time for this again!” Hermione started to protest, and he laughed softly. She rolled her eyes at him as she realised what she had said.

“Hermione, we have nothing _but_ time. That’s what we have here.” He chuckled softly and re-clothed her silently, a smile on his lips.

“Leave it until tonight hmm? When we go home, not having me pressed against the wall of vials of Time Sand.” Hermione laughed, placing a light kiss on his lips. She moved away towards the door before she turned back as he grabbed her hand. He pulled her back to him and spun her around, away from the door. He leaned towards her and kissed her deeply. She pulled away gently, smiling at him before he smiled back, opening his mouth and taking a breath. His lips moved and he spoke with a slightly rough, croaky voice that sounded like heaven to her ears because it was real, true and not just in her head.

“Not yet then.”


End file.
